Shoe for furniture-legs



C. B. WAGNER, JR.

SHOE FOR FURNITURE LEGS.

APPLlCATlON FILED JAN-28,1921.

Patented m ;.20,1921.

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GHARLES B. WAGNER, JR., 0F BURLINGTON, WISCONSIN.

SHOE F0355 FURNITURE-LEGS.

Application filed January 28, 1921.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that T, CHARLES TVVAGNER, Jr., a citizen of the United States residing at Burlington, in the county of Racine and State of Wisconsin, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Shoes for Furniture-Legs, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to devices for permitting chairs, tables, or similar articles of furniture to be readily moved and to be held stationary when sustaining a load. The invention seeks to provide a device for the stated purpose which may be readily applied to a furniture leg and which will not materially increase the cost of the fur niture nor detract from the appearance of the same. The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure l is a vertical section through a portion of a furniture leg having my improved device applied thereto;

Fig. 2 is a detail perspective view showing the several elements of the device separated but approximately in their relative positions.

The numeral 1 indicates a portion of a chair leg which may be of any known or preferred design. In carrying out my invention, I employ a cylindrical casing or housing 2 having lugs 3 at its upper end which are adapted to pass through slots l in an attaching plate 5 and be bent over against the upper surface of the same. The plate is provided with openings 6, between the slots i and its edge, through which screws or other fastenings 7 are inserted to secure the device to the leg 1. The lower edge of the casing 2 is turned inwardly to form a stop flange 8 and slidably mounted within the casing and adapted to rest upon the said stop flange is a shoe 9 which is preferably a block or plate of glass or metal having a polished convex lower surface. The shoe is of such diameter that it will fit closely but slidably within the casing and may be of such thickness that it will withstand rough usage and will firmly support the furniture without being unduly heavy or unattractive in appearance. The convex lower surface of the shoe minimizes the area of contact with a floor or rug and thereby eliminates a large amount of the friction which is usually present in the use of the ordinary casters. The upper end of the shoe is fiat, as clearly shown in Fig, l,

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 2 8 i921.

Serial No. 440,726.

and upon the said upper flat end of the shoe, I place a relatively heavy washer 10 of felt or other cushioning material which receives pressure from a spring 11 disposed between the said washer and an upper similar washer 12 which bears against the lower end of the attaching plate 5. It will be readily understood that the washers are slightly less in diameter than the internal diameter of the casing so that they will not interfere with the free movement of the parts and at the same time will effectually cushion the relative movement of the shoe so that there will be no damaging shock applied to the shoe or other parts when a load is placed on the furniture. The arrangement furthermore, permits the shoe to relatively rotate about its vertical axis as the furniture is pushed about so that the labor of moving a chair or table from point to point is very materially reducedJ Moreover, the cushions eliminate noise which would otherwise be due to the slipping of the ends of the springs over the surfaces of the shoe or the attaching plate and thereby avoid the harsh scraping sound which might otherwise be heard when the furniture is pushed over a floor. The cushions also serve to prevent wear between the ends of the spring and the respectively opposed surfaces so that the spring will retain its dimensions and full strength and they also yield somewhat to the compression of the spring when weight is placed upon the article of furniture so that the convolutions of the spring are not apt to become distorted and locked as frequently occurs where the springs hear di rectly against a hard resisting surface. Above its lower end, the shoe is provided with an annular shoulder 13 adapted to engage the stop flange 8, the surface of the shoe above and below said shoulder guiding the shoe in its movements and preventing rocking thereof so that it cannot bind within the casing.

It will be readily noted that I have provided an exceedingly simple support for a furniture leg which will permit it to be freely moved over a floor or rug without injury to the surface upon which it moves. The spring should be of suificientstrength to support the furniture when no load is imposed thereon, the lower end of the casing being supported above the floor and, therefore, ofiering no impediment to the free movement of the furniture en a load is placed upon the furniture, as when a person is seated on a chair, the'force of the spring will be overcome and the lower end of the casing will then be caused to engage the floor or rug and slipping of the furniture will be prevented.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new is:

1. The combination with a furniture leg, of a casing secured to the lower end thereof and provided at its lower end with an inturned annular stop flange, a shoe fitted within the casing and adapted to rest at its edge upon said stop flange, a cushion disposed upon the upper side of the shoe, a second cushion disposed against the lower end of the, furniture leg, and a coiled spring arranged between the two cushions.

2. The combination with a furniture leg, of an attaching plate secured against "the lower end of the leg and having openings therethrough, an open-ended casing provided at its upper end with lugs passing through the openings in theattaching plate and bearing upon the upper side of said plate, an inwardly projecting stop flange at the lower end of the casing, a shoe loosely fitted in the lower end of the casing and having an annular shoulder adapted to rest on said stop flange, an elastic washer resting on the shoe, a similar washer disposed against the attaching plate, and a spring arranged between and bearing againstthe two washers.

In testimony whereof I afliX my signature.

CHARLES B. WAGNER, J R. [L. s] 

